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Obama trolled for scaling down birthday bash, fans ask 'did Trump cancel indoor Xmas party?'

Obama fans hit back at trollers who slammed the former president for announcing the party and then scaling it back

Barack Obama's scheduled 60th birthday celebration on August 4 had to be scaled back after many pointed out that it would be in violation of CDC guidelines for the pandemic. The party was scheduled on August 4 at his $11.57 million mansion on Martha's Vineyard. According to reports, the guest list included 500 names including Oprah Winfrey and George Clooney along with 200 hired hands. On August 2, the National Institute of Health (NIH) had announced that all big gatherings should be avoided. "If you're talking about a small party like I might have at my house for six or eight people who are all fully vaccinated, I do not believe, at this point, we need to put masks on to be next to each other," Francis Collins, director of the NIH, told CNN.

"But if there were 100 people, and, of course, how are you really going to be sure about people's vaccination status?" he added.

Given the circumstances, Obama faced a lot of pushback from people for the scheduled event, which was reportedly going to feature a performance by Pearl Jam. The photographs from the Lollapalooza music festival sent shockwaves across the country and even though the Obamas weren't going to host that huge a crowd at their mansion, people took this opportunity to shame the former first family over the event. 

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Obama scales back 60th birthday celebration

“Due to the new spread of the Delta variant over the past week, the President and Mrs Obama have decided to significantly scale back the event to include only family and close friends,” Obama’s spokeswoman Hannah Hankins said in a statement, according to The New York Times on August 4. “He’s appreciative of others sending their birthday wishes from afar and looks forward to seeing people soon,” she added.

Obama was blamed for creating a prospective public health "nightmare" by having an estimated 700 people at the party amid the frightful national surge of Covid-19 Delta variant and new restrictions.

White House spokesperson Jen Psaki had defended Obama's decision to celebrate his 60th birthday amidst a sizable crowd saying the venue was within a county classified by the CDC as having only moderate Covid-19 transmission. However, the outbreak is much more serious and contagious at the nearby Cape Cod, where a recent party resulted in many guests testing positive despite being vaccinated. 

Earlier this week, Obama faced criticism from civilians on Twitter as well as Republican politicians. Nicole Malliotakis from Staten Island told New York Post, "Just like President Obama, every American should have the right to celebrate their milestones without arbitrary government mandates and interference. We all know if this was President Trump the left would be screaming." Andy Biggs from Arizona tweeted, "Just imagine if this party was for Trump.”

Some applauded Obama on the Internet after news of him scaling back his celebrations broke on the morning of his birthday. "This is why criticizing other people and jumping to conclusions is just so destructive. As cases keep going up, Obama cancelled the party. Did Trump cancel his indoor Xmas party in Dec 2020? He should have but didn't. And your point is?" wrote an Obama fan in response to Candace Owens tweet where she criticized the president and poked fun at him for urging invitees to donate to charity rather than bringing gifts. 

"Happy Birthday Mr. President Obama! I hope you have a wonderful day, sorry your party has been cancelled, maybe next year. Meanwhile, enjoy the Big 60! @BarackObama," wrote another. "And he’s cancelled his party because again unlike Trump, Obama actually cares about the American people. Must be ever frustrating to watch this play out everyday," another Obama supporter tweeted. 

However, there were a couple of trolls as well who had fun at the former president's expense. "ROFL...Obama realized the word was out...the jig is up. Announced the party will greatly be scaled down. The hypocrites kill me. Lololol," read a tweet. "FTFY: Obama limiting birthday party to family, close friends amid bad PR concerns," another user tweeted. "It took him long enough to cancel. It also put Biden in a position where Psaki was defending Obama’s party at the White House press conference. Not a good look," another tweet read.